- Date
- December 13, 2022, 10:06, time zone not recorded
- Place
- Lewistown, MT
- Injuries
- 4 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- C-GZPUPiper PA42
- Defining event
- Landing: Hard landing
- Weather
- Instrument (IMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Investigation class
- Class 4 - Basic report with no Prelim publish
- NTSB office
- Western Pacific Region
- Parties
- Helena FSDO
- Case key
- 106455
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
The pilot’s improper landing flare, which resulted in a hard landing. Contributing to the accident was the out of service visual glideslope indicator and snow obscuring the runway markings.
Findings · 4
NTSB’s coded findings. Those marked are part of the probable cause; the rest are factors or other findings. Under each, the cases with the same finding.
Sequence of events
The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event is the one that best describes the accident. Under each, the cases with the same event anywhere in their sequence.
Analysis
The flight crew reported that, the instrument approach was flown on autopilot to about 700 ft above ground level until the runway was visually in sight. They were 300 ft off the runway centerline, and 1 nautical mile from the runway threshold. The visual glideslope indicator was inoperative, and the runway markings were obscured due to dry light snow. The airplane subsequently landed hard on the unusable portion of the runway, about 800 ft short of the landing threshold, and the left mail landing gear tire blew, causing the propellor to strike the runway. The airplane veered off the runway substantially damaging the left wing. The pilots reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.
Aircraft
- Registration
- C-GZPU
- Reported as
- Piper PA42 (1000)
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 42-5527011
- Built
- 1984
- Airframe hours
- 7,172
- Engines
- Honeywell TPE331-14A-801Y, 1,650 horsepower, turbo propHoneywell TPE331-14B-801Y, 1,650 horsepower, turbo prop
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Business · Non-U.S., commercial
- Operator
- Babin Air
- Registered owner
- Babin Air
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · October 29, 2022 · 29 hours before
- Departed
- KGTF · Great Falls, MT
- Destination
- KLWT · Lewistown, MT
- Flight plan
- IFR
- Airport
- KLWT · Lewiston Municipal Airport, runway 8, 6,100 × 100 ft, asphalt
- Equipment
- Electronic multifunction display, Electronic flight bag or handheld device, Auto-pilot, ADS-B, Onboard weather, Stall warning system, Satellite tracking device
Flight crew · 2
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 73
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Airline transport
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land, Single-engine sea, Multi-engine sea
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, With waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- November 1, 2022
- Seat
- Left
- Restraint
- 3-point
- Flight hours
- 25,500 total · 250 in this make and model · 24,000 as pilot in command · 100 in the last 90 days · 35 in the last 30 days
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 24
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Without waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- December 6, 2022
- Seat
- Right
- Restraint
- 3-point
- Flight hours
- 446 total · 47 in this make and model · 324 as pilot in command · 60 in the last 90 days · 40 in the last 30 days · 3 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Instrument (IMC) · Day
- Wind
- 100° at 3 knots
- Visibility
- 1.5 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 400 ft overcast
- Temperature
- 14 °F, dew point 10 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.97 inHg
- Observed at
- KLWT
- METAR
- SPECI KLWT 131702Z AUTO 10003KT 1 1/2SM BR OVC004 M10/M12 A2997 RMK AO2 T11001117=
Docket · 2
The files NTSB released with the investigation on March 2, 2023, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 6.0 MB in all.